A connecting rod of the type described above is disclosed as the embodiment of FIGS. 4 and 5 in German patent No. 658,462. This prior art connecting rod comprises two rod components joined along a longitudinal dividing plane and having ends designed to receive a piston pin and a crankpin. The rod components have U-shaped cross sections, the backs of which butt against each other at their ends adjacent to the piston pin bearing and to the crankpin bearing and are secured by connecting means.
The connecting means at the crankpin end comprise extensions of the side flanges of the U-shaped sections of each rod component. The extensions overlap the central plane and are provided with holes so that, after assembly of the rod components, the extension means are located one on top of another and can be connected to each other by a pin or bolt. In addition, one connecting means each is provided on either side, longitudinally, of the piston pin bearing at the piston pin end of the connecting rod. These two connecting means are shown as threaded bolts with nuts whose axes are disposed perpendicular to the central plane and, thus, perpendicular to the direction of the bearing axis. The threaded bolts at the piston pin end may also be replaced by two connecting means which correspond to those located at the crankpin end. Due to the form of the connecting means, the prior art connecting rod is expensive to manufacture and difficult to mount.
A two part connecting rod in which hemispherical protrusions are provided instead of a VL bearing boss for the piston pin is also disclosed in International Patent Application No. WO 86/04122. These protrusions are cast integral with the rod components and form bearings for a piston by engaging in the piston spherical segments of a matching shape. To insert the hemispherical protrusions into the spherical segments, the top part of the prior art connecting rod, which can be connected to the piston, is split in a dividing plane extending perpendicular to the bearing axis, while the dividing plane in the lower part of the connecting rod extends in the usual manner in the direction of the bearing axis. Furthermore, the top ends of the two rod components are beveled on their inner sides such that a wedge-shaped space is formed which permits the protrusions to be inserted into the spherical segments of the piston. The spherical segment-type bearing for the piston, which determines the type of assembly and consequently the shape of the prior art connecting rod, considerably restricts the use of this connecting rod.